Teen drivers

News-Times, The (Danbury, CT)

Published 7:00 pm, Friday, December 14, 2007

But the accidents keep coming.

In response to the accident-related deaths of seven teenagers in the past few months in Connecticut, Governor Rell has appointed a task force and asked it to come up with short- and long-term solutions.

"These accidents and their resulting injuries are tragic. Even one death is horrific and ripples through the lives of friends, families and communities," the governor said. "We need to find new strategies for dealing with this issue."

New strategies, of course, will really be old strategies. The solutions to this problem are no secret -- better training, more supervision, little or no night driving, no driving that involves a vehicle filled with teenagers, no mixing of drinking and driving, no cell phone chatter while driving.

The challenge will be the state's willingness to adopt a form of "tough love" for teen drivers.

That willingness has been tested before. It took years for the legislature to get enough votes to write graduated licenses into law. Businesses that rely on teenage employees fought hard to keep them on the road, no matter the time of day. They were not alone. Legislators said they heard from parents who insisted teen drivers were needed to drive younger siblings.

At the first meeting of Rell's task force last week, Motor Vehicle Commissioner Robert Ward, co-chairman of the task force, suggested a broadening of the graduated licensing program might be one solution.

But he and other members said more public education is needed, so parents know the restrictions placed on those with graduated licenses.

For example, during the first three months of driving, a 16- or 17-year-old driver may legally drive with one or both parents, a driver's education instructor, or a person older than 20 who has held a license for four or more consecutive years.

During the second three months, the teen may drive with members of the immediate family. They may not drive between midnight and 5 a.m., except for special circumstances or with a parent.

The youngest member of the task force is Stephen Simalchik, a 16-year-old junior at Danbury High. He doesn't yet have his license, but thinks graduated licenses are a good idea.

Connecticut is behind other states in helping teen drivers gradually take on the responsibility of a motor vehicle. The state was late to adopt graduated licenses. Some states keep 16-year-olds off the road and require more hours of training.

Any change in regulations for teen drivers will be controversial, but Connecticut should be up to the challenge. A driver's license is a privilege, not a right.